Moments
by DCFanatic4life
Summary: Every life is comprised of moments, these are Jericho and Stephanie's...A prequel to I've Been Loving You Too Long...RR...Completed!
1. Homeward Bound

Disclaimer: I don't own the character or the real people portrayed in this fic. The people belong to themselves and the gimmicks belong to Vince McMahon and WWE.

Based around the song, "Homeward Bound," by Simon and Garfunkel.

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).**

Distribution: If you want it, ASK, please don't just take it and post it somewhere.

Summary: A prequel to "I've Been Loving You Too Long," these are moments in Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon's life.

A/N: It doesn't have a specific time, just know that it's after Stephanie became GM.

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Jericho walked into the dressing room, exhausted after his match with Edge. It had been a rigorous match, but he had come out with the victory. But right now, he just wanted to take a shower and get back to his hotel room. He was hoping to get at least seven hours sleep tonight. The past few nights he had had to drive practically all night, and had barely gotten any sleep at all.

He just wanted to take a shower, gather up his things, and go back to the hotel. Luckily he had chosen a hotel fairly close to the arena, so it wouldn't take him a long time to get there. That, and he was so tired, he might fall asleep while driving.

He got out of the shower, and started putting things in his bag. He glanced at his cell phone and caught the time. He hadn't realized how late it was. He figured that everyone else would be gone by now. That was a blessing, last thing he wanted to do was get caught up in a conversation with anyone.

He grabbed his things, and proceeded to walk out to his rental car. He noticed that there were no people walking up and down the hallways, they must have all left soon after the show had ended. Lucky them, he wish that he could have left early.

Jericho was walking down the hallway when he heard a sound coming from one of the dressing rooms. He tried to ignore it, but he heard it again. It sounded like someone was crying, and it didn't sound like a male. As tired as he was, he couldn't just let someone cry, and walk away. He wasn't raised to turn away someone in need.

He pinpointed the dressing room that it was coming from, and knocked lightly on the door. He could hear a stirring inside, but the person inside made no motion for him to come inside. He tapped again lightly.

"What is it?" the voice said from behind the door. Jericho could tell that whoever was inside had been crying. He still couldn't tell who it was though, probably because of the choked tears impairing their voice.

"Can I come in?" Jericho asked. There was a long pause, and Jericho could hear the person inside rustling around.

"Come in," the person said.

Jericho walked in the room, and immediately knew who's dressing room he had walked into. It wasn't hard to figure out, looking at the leather couch, wooden desk, and all around sophistication of the room. He was in Stephanie's dressing room. He looked towards the couch, and saw her sitting there looking over some documents. Jericho was standing somewhat awkwardly in the middle of the room so he walked over to the couch and sat next to her.

"Steph, I heard crying, and I just wanted to make sure everything was ok," he said looking at her bowed head.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I was just looking over some stuff," Stephanie said keeping her head down, "What are you doing here so late anyways?"

"Well, I took a long shower and...hey, wait, don't try to change the subject, now really what's wrong?"

"I said it was nothing Chris," Stephanie said quickly, trying to get off the subject. Jericho put his index finger under her chin and lifted her face to look into his.

"Come on Steph, I know something's wrong."

"It's just all the stress that's going on with my life," she told him.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, first there's the settlement that's going on with HHH, the divorce was finalized, but we're still splitting everything we have, and it's just so difficult."

"Do you still love him?" Jericho asked, curious to find out her answer.

"No, it's not that, it's just once it became finalized, it was like 'that's it', it's really over. I was married, but now I'm not, it's weird."

"Well, I'm sure it is difficult to adjust too, but you'll get through it, you're strong," he said giving her shoulder a companionable squeeze, "Now that can't be the only thing that's bothering you." She sighed, and looked down again, as if trying to silence the conflict in her head.

"You really want to know?"

"Of course I do Stephanie, I wouldn't have come in here if I didn't want to know what was wrong."

"It's also my dad, he's putting so much pressure on me to be a good general manager, and it's hard to live up to his standards, I just want to make him proud of me I guess."

"Why does he put so much pressure on you?" he asked trying to understand what she was telling him. He wanted to understand so that he could help her if she needed it.

"He doesn't trust Bischoff as far as he can throw him, and he wants me to be successful over Bischoff, and it's not easy. He's cunning Chris, and sometimes I just feel like I don't have what it takes to be the GM. I'm trying the best that I can, and sometimes I just feel like it's all for nothing, that nothing I do is right," she said before breaking down in tears.

Jericho didn't know what to do, so he just put his arms around her shoulders and brought her to him. She buried her face in his chest, and he just ran his fingers through her hair. He didn't know how to assuage her stress, so he just held her. She sobbed into his shirt, making it damp, but he didn't care, he just wanted to help her, to make her feel better.

He couldn't help but notice how good she smelled though, and how pretty she looked even with tears streaming down his face. Sure, Stephanie was his friend, but he'd never looked at her as anything more. Yet, she felt so good in his arms, and he unconsciously tightened his arms around her until her tears subsided. She broke away from him, and looked at him, tears obstructing his view of her eyes.

"I'm sorry I cried all over you."

"Hey it's ok, you had to let it all out," he said sympathetically.

"Thanks," she said simply.

Jericho looked into her eyes, and before he knew what he was doing, he leaned in and kissed her. His brain finally took control, and he realized what he had done. He was surprised by his own actions, he didn't know what had possessed him to kiss her, but she was looking so gorgeous and vulnerable he couldn't seem to resist.

The even more shocking part was that she was kissing him back. Never in a million years, had he expected her to kiss back. Push him away and slap him silly, yes, but kiss him back, never. But she was, and he couldn't help but like it. He liked kissing her, he came to a startling conclusion: he really, really liked kissing her.

He was in heaven, he had obviously died and gone to heaven. Here he was kissing Stephanie McMahon, and he had never felt more at peace than he did in this moment. It was like a silent calm had come over his body, and undulated itself in every vein, every cell. He felt complete for the first time in his life.

They both pulled away at the same moment, and Jericho stared at Stephanie in amazement. She was looking at him in shock, and he couldn't blame her. He didn't know how he had ended up kissing her, but he didn't regret it, not for a single second. He hoped she didn't either.

"You...you just kissed me," she said, shock still in her voice, and in her face.

"Yeah," he said, big words escaping him.

"Why -why did you do that?"

"I don't exactly know." He couldn't get his brain to work, a fuzzy feeling of happiness clouding his every thought. He had never felt like this before, and he didn't know how to react to the entire situation, and it looked as if Stephanie was in the same predicament.

"What happens now?" she asked, her eyes exploring his.

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see," he answered, before leaning in and kissing her again.


	2. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

A/N:The chapter is based aroundthe song "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Peter, Paul, and Mary.

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).**

I'm not really sure if I like this chapter, it seems rushed or something, but still I hope you enjoy it. And if you want to be brutal with me, be brutal. :)

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The past five months had quite possibly been the best five months of Chris Jericho's life. Being with Stephanie seemed to bring out the best him, and he had never felt as happy as he had these past months. It was like he was a new person, and she was the one who had brought it all out, she was his reason for happiness.

At first everyone had been pretty much shocked by the news that they had decided to see each other. Everyone knew they had been friends, but no one had seen the depth of their feelings, not even them. Their friends were happy that they had found such happiness. Even Vince was happy for them, but mostly because he loved Stephanie and wanted her to be happy.

Stephanie smiled as she got ready for the show; she seemed to smile a lot nowadays. She owed a lot of that to Jericho, he meant so much to her now. She didn't even know what she had been missing when she wasn't with him. He made every single one of her days brighter.

She had thought they wouldn't work at first, and she had felt a little awkward going out on their first date. They had been friends for so long and to be on a date with him was weird. But after a while that feeling faded, and it turned into a lingering contentment that she felt every single day.

Jericho and Stephanie walked into the arena for SmackDown holding hands, and just enjoying being with each other. As soon as their relationship had come out, they had written a storyline where Jericho was able to go back to SmackDown to be closer to Stephanie. It made it easier on them to be on the same show.

They weren't together on screen, but Jericho felt it was better that way. Frankly, he didn't want to be with Stephanie on screen, he didn't want to exploit his relationship with Stephanie on television. And he feared after a while it would be more difficult to distinguish between character and real life if they were to become an on screen couple. He told her this often, making sure she didn't have the writers write a romance in their future. She did oversee everything after all.

Jericho had a match with Eddy Guerrero, and were a few minutes into the match when Jericho noticed Stephanie walking briskly down the ramp, a determined look on her face. Jericho didn't have enough time to really think about what she was doing down there, he had to concentrate on his match. He would send her quick glances every now and then, a questioning look in his eyes, but she refused to look at him.

Earl informed them that they had a 2 minutes left in the match, so Jericho turned up the heat, wanting to make the finish really great. Before he got a chance, Stephanie grabbed the ring bell and smacked Eddy in the face with it when he had fallen off the apron. She pushed him back in the ring, and told Jericho to pin him. Jericho, with confusion written all over his face, unconsciously did what she asked.

After Jericho had pinned Eddy, Stephanie stepped into the ring, microphone in hand. Jericho stood up, and looked at her, unsure of what she was going to say. He hadn't read about any of this going down.

"I'm sure you're all wondering why I just did what I did," Stephanie began, "Well, I decided playing nice was getting me nowhere. And I hate being little Miss Goody-Two-Shoes, so the bitch is back, and allying herself with her old business partner, Chris Jericho," Stephanie said as she raised Jericho's hand in victory. Jericho looked at her, trying to contain the anger he suddenly felt towards her.

They walked backstage in silence, Jericho's jaw set tight, trying to keep himself from losing his temper right then and there. Stephanie had been smiling as she left, pleased that her character was back with Jericho's, but as she noticed Jericho's mood, she stopped smiling. They walked into their dressing room, and Jericho shut the door before turning to her.

"What the hell was that?" Jericho said, finally letting all his anger out.

"I thought that we could it would be nice to have a storyline together," Stephanie said with a tentative smile on her face, she didn't understand why Jericho was so angry about this.

"Stephanie, I thought I told you I didn't want a storyline together!"

"But I thought it would be a good idea."

"A good idea, Stephanie I specifically asked you time and time again not put us together, do you remember that?" Jericho said his voice raising.

"Yeah, but-"

"There's no buts Stephanie, did you lobby for this, were you the one who came up with this!"

"Yeah-"

"I knew it, I knew you would do this," Jericho said cutting her off again. Stephanie was starting to get angry.

"Do what Chris, what are you talking about?"

"I knew you would try to use our relationship for personal gains. I bet you had this planned all along, I should've known!"

"How dare you say that to me, how dare you make me out to be a bad person!" Stephanie said yelling at him.

"Oh, don't give me that Stephanie, it's all about you coming out on top, always having to be the best, I should've known it would come to this," Jericho said, not even thinking clearly anymore, blinded by the anger that he felt.

"Fine, if that's the way you feel, just leave, ok, just get the hell out of here! Cause it obviously doesn't matter that I love you and just wanted to be with you, so just get out of my sight!" Stephanie screamed, reaching new levels of screechy-ness. Jericho's eyes grew wide.

"Did you just say you loved me?" Jericho asked surprised, they had yet to say those three little words to each other.

"What, what do you mean?" Stephanie said, not fully realizing what she had just screamed at him.

"You just said you love me," Jericho said, the haze of anger fading away, leaving only the fact that she loved him.

"Well, I do," Stephanie said quietly, her eyes fixed on the carpet.

"Yeah?" A smile crept its way on to Jericho's face.

"Yeah," she said gathering enough courage to look up at him.

She didn't know what his reaction would be to her outburst. She hadn't meant to tell him she loved him. After what had happened with HHH, she had been wary of loving anyone else. She didn't know if she wanted to fall in love again, to risk her heart by loving someone. Yet, once she had started dating Jericho she couldn't help but fall in love with him.

She looked at his face, and saw that a smile was on his lips. It surprised her somewhat. She almost expected him to laugh at her. He didn't seem the type who really liked all the mushy stuff that went with a relationship. She looked into his eyes and was even more surprised by the open look of love she saw in them.

Jericho couldn't get over the fact that she actually loved him. Their relationship had been fun for the past several months, and he had been truly happy. Yet, the depth of their feelings had never really been explored. And now he was suddenly with someone who loved him, and he had never felt more genuinely pleased.

"I love you too," he replied looking at her.

"Really?" she said in astonishment.

"Really."

Stephanie ran to him as they embraced each other, their previous argument forgotten about. He leaned his head down and kissed her passionately on the lips. He pulled away and smiled at her, his gaze filled with love. She smiled back at him. For this moment, everything was perfect.


	3. Question

A/N: This chapter is based aroundthe song "Question" by Old 97's.

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).

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Stephanie woke up, and immediately smiled as she noticed whose arms she had around her waist. She was in the arms of the man that she adored with all her being. She felt like she could stay in his loving embrace for the rest of her life and be perfectly content.

It had been a year to the day that he had kissed her, and they had gotten together. An entire year, and they were still together. It really was an achievement. She had to admit that when they had first decided to see each other she didn't think that it would last this long, but she was glad that it had, she was glad that he was by her side.

Jericho woke up, and looked down at Stephanie in his arms, she was smiling and he thought she had never looked more spectacular than she did in that moment. He was so happy that he had found out what a wonderful person she was, and that she was his.

"Hey babe, I was thinking that tonight we could go have dinner, and take a walk on the beach," Jericho said, looking down at her. They were currently in California doing a few shows, and he thought that he'd take the opportunity to show her what California had to offer.

"Hmm, that sounds good, I love the beach," she said smiling at him.

"I want to make our anniversary special."

"As long as I'm with you it will be special."

The day passed in relative calm. They had a house show in San Jose that afternoon, but nothing other than that was planned. Jericho had faced The Rock, and had won a good match. And Jericho and Stephanie had managed to steal a few moments together before his match.

They got out of the arena fairly quickly, and decided that they would go to Santa Cruz for their special dinner. The drive was beautiful as they passed the scenery, and Jericho kept glancing over at Stephanie before she noticed him looking at her and simply grabbed his hand and held it in hers.

Jericho loved touching her, her skin was so soft. She made him feel like he was her protector. He had never felt the way he did about her with any of the other women he had been with. They seemed to just click, and that's why he was going to ask her the big question tonight.

He had thought about asking her for a while, but he never seemed to come up with the right approach. He was all ready to ask her, but something always came up and he never had the opportunity. Tonight was going to be different, it was their anniversary, and he was going to make it memorable.

"Chris, this place is wonderful," Stephanie said as she took in the elegant restaurant they were in.

"Only the best for you."

"You know there was a time when I never thought we would see this day."

"What do you mean," he asked curiously.

"I don't know, I guess I kind of always expected us to not last, to let fighting and bitterness get in the way," she said with a laugh, "I'm glad I was wrong."

"I'm glad you were wrong too," he said chuckling.

"You make me so happy Chris, I hope you know that."

"You make me happy too," he said with a smile.

They arrived at the beach just as the sun was beginning to set. It was beautiful watching the sun dip below the horizon. There was a light summer breeze blowing off the water, and Jericho wrapped his arm around Stephanie as they walked at the water's edge. The wind gently blew her long skirt as they watched the sunset.

Jericho was trying to get up the courage to ask her. He was glad he had waited until this moment because it felt so right asking Stephanie here, on the beach, watching a beautiful sunset. He couldn't have scripted it better. He stopped for a moment and motioned for Stephanie to stop as well. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, and rested his chin on her shoulder. They stood staring out on the water for a few minutes in comfortable silence.

"Marry me," Jericho whispered into her ear. Stephanie's eyes grew wide and she turned around abruptly.

"What?" she asked in complete shock. Jericho put his hands on her shoulders.

"I said 'marry me.'"

"Did you just ask what I thought you asked?" Stephanie asked again, still not believing her own ears. She stood in utter silence as Jericho took a little black box out of his back pocket and knelt on the sand.

"Stephanie, you have been my saving grace this last year, the first thing I think about when I get up, and the last thing I think about at night. I never thought I would find someone who was so utterly perfect for me, and I didn't even realize she was right in front of my face. Stephanie, you're it, you're all I want for the rest of my life, it doesn't matter who's come before for either of us, because I know that you're the only thing I want from now on. You make me feel like I'm invincible, like I can do anything. You make my life better just by being in it. I want to share my life with you, I want to share myself with you. I would love it if you would be my wife," Jericho said meaning every single word.

Stephanie had long ago started crying and just absorbed the words that he was saying. She had always wanted a romantic proposal, but it had never really happened. And now it was like all her dreams were coming true. She had never known the kind of happiness she had with Chris.

She stared down at him, and looked into his eyes. He was looking up at her with a hopeful expression, mixed with a little bit of uncertainty. She slowly nodded her head, as a huge grin crept onto his face.

"Yeah?" he asked her, still a little bit shocked by her answer.

"Of course you idiot, did you actually think that I would say no?" she said laughing through her tears. He jumped up from the sand and enveloped her in his arms and she returned his embrace. He swung her around, until they both fell laughing into the sand.

"Well, you never know," he said as he helped her sit up, "I thought you might be afraid to get married again."

"I was afraid for a while, but its different now," she said, brushing sand off of herself.

"Why?"

"Because I'm with you, you're different from Hunter. I love you more than I loved him, I never felt like I could be myself with him, it was always his way or no way."

"Well, you can always be yourself with me," he said kissing her temple, as he pulled her close with an arm. She rested her head on his shoulder. They sat watching the sunset, with smiles on their faces.

"I love you," she said.

"I love you too."

"Wait, I almost forgot something," Jericho said, Stephanie looked at him questioningly. He pulled out the ring box that he had stuffed in his pocket when she had said yes. He had been so caught up in the moment that he hadn't given her the ring.

"I forgot this," he said, opening the ring box. It was a gorgeous ring, and she immediately fell in love with it. It was a large diamond with two emeralds on either side.

"Chris, that's so beautiful, and emeralds are my favorite," she said looking from the ring to his face.

"I know," he said as he slipped the ring onto her finger, she smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"And how did you know that," she said jokingly.

"I have my ways," he responded with a wink.

"I'm sure you do."

"So when are we going to tell everyone?"

"I guess the sooner the better, I want everyone to know."

"Ok," he said with a soft chuckle.

"Chris?"

"Yeah babe?"

"Thank you," she said, looking at him.

"For what?" he asked, wondering what she meant.

"For loving me."

"It's been my pleasure."


	4. Love Me Tender

A/N:This chapter is based aroundthe song, "Love Me Tender" bye Elvis

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).

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Stephanie woke up, and immediately a grin graced her face. Today was the biggest day of her life. She was getting married to Chris Jericho, and she couldn't be happier. She had waited seven months for this day, ever since he proposed to her on the beach in California. She saw it was a beautiful day, and anticipated what was to come.

Jericho got out of bed, and thought about Stephanie who had stayed at her parent's house the night before. She was trying to keep the tradition of the bride and groom not seeing each other before the wedding. He had to chuckle at her superstitious nature. Any way he thought about it, he knew that today was going to be a great day, he was marrying Stephanie after all.

Jericho stood nervously at the front of the altar, waiting for Stephanie to walk down the aisle. He had dreamed about this moment for so long, and now it was coming true. He never thought he'd find happiness, for the longest time he had had no luck with women, never finding that one he clicked with. Now he had Stephanie and all seemed right in his world.

Stephanie was standing behind the huge mahogany doors, waiting for her cue to walk out. Her bridesmaids were almost to the altar, and her turn would be next. She couldn't stop grinning, and turned towards her father as he began to speak to her.

"You ready Princess?" he asked looking down at her.

"As ready as I'll ever be Daddy," she told him, a grin still firmly planted on her face.

"I'm so proud of you."

"Why?"

"You've turned into such a beautiful woman, and I love you."

"Daddy, what's with the mushy stuff?" Stephanie said raising an eyebrow. It wasn't like Vince to get so emotional.

"Well, I'm losing my only daughter."

"Daddy, I've been married before."

"I know, but I never got to really give you away, I don't think that wedding with Test counts."

"Well, thank you Daddy, now let's get this show on the road," Stephanie said as the doors opened signaling her arrival.

Jericho saw Stephanie and his breath caught in his throat. She looked so spectacular he couldn't even believe that she was going to be his. She was wearing a gorgeous off-the-shoulder white gown, with a tight bodice, which gave way to the skirt, which fell to the ground followed by a short train. Her hair was pulled up and a tiara sat prettily in her chestnut locks. She didn't have veil on, but one look at her and Jericho didn't think she needed it. He felt Kurt, his best man, pat him on the shoulder.

"You're a lucky guy," Kurt whispered.

"I know," Jericho answered, his eyes fixed on Stephanie.

Stephanie reached the altar and Vince let go of her, and she went to stand next to Jericho. He smiled at her, and she smiled back. They both had been waiting for this day for so long, even longer than they both realized.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join Christopher Irvine and Stephanie McMahon in holy matrimony. Marriage is a holy union entered in by two people, and it is not to be taken lightly. So now if anyone objects to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace," Everyone remained silent, so the minister continued, "Both Stephanie and Christopher have elected to write their own vows which they will now say to each other," the minister said.

"I remember the first day I met you. Daddy had been gushing about a new acquisition he had made, and how he was going to stick it to WCW. He called me into his office and there you were. I wasn't impressed," the guests laughed, "I'd seen enough wrestlers not to get excited over a new one. Over the course of the last four and a half years, you've proved me absolutely wrong. I should have paid attention to you, because in you I've found the love of my life. I've found a person who accepts me for who I am, faults and all, and we all know I have my faults," Chris smiled at her, "Before we ever started seeing each other, you were a great friend Chris, you helped me through so much. And I love you for it. I love you for so many reasons, most importantly because of how you make me feel. You make me feel special Chris, you make me feel like I'm wanted. And I want to spend the rest of my life trying to make you feel the same way I do. I owe you so much Chris, and I love you with all my heart, and there's no one I would rather spend the rest of my life with, I love you."

"There was a time, not too long ago when I thought I would never find that special person for me, where I thought that I just wasn't the kind of person destined to find love. Then you walked into my life, and suddenly I knew that you were what I had been waiting for. You are my everything Stephanie, you're my heart, you're the reason I smile, you're the reason that I get up in the morning. The first time I kissed you I felt more at peace than I ever had before. I felt like I had found that piece that I had been missing, and I hadn't even known that it was gone. I love you Stephanie, and those words don't even begin to scratch the surface of what I feel about you. I want to make you happy for the rest of your days, and that's what I fully intend to do. I love you."

"The rings please," the minister asked Kurt. Kurt handed the minister the rings that Jericho and Stephanie had picked out.

"Christopher take this ring," Jericho complied, "And repeat after me: I Christopher Irvine."

"I, Christopher Irvine..."

"Take you Stephanie McMahon, to be my lawful wedded wife. And with this ring, I thee wed," the minister finished.

"Take you Stephanie McMahon to be my lawful wedded wife. And with this ring, I thee wed," he repeated, slipping the ring on Stephanie's finger. As he did so he sent her smile which she enthusiastically returned.

"Now Stephanie, take this ring and repeat after me: "I Stephanie McMahon."

"I, Stephanie McMahon."

"Take you Christopher Irvine to be my lawful wedded husband. And with this ring, I thee wed."

"Take you Christopher Irvine to be my lawful wedded husband. And with this ring, I thee wed," she said, slipping Jericho's ring on.

"Then by the power vested in me I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

Jericho hauled Stephanie to him, and pressed his lips to hers. Stephanie framed his face in her hands as she kissed him. They both grinned as they pulled away, and were greeted by the thunderous applause of their guests.

"May I present to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Irvine," the minister announced. The applause became louder as Jericho and Stephanie walked out of the chapel hand in hand.

The reception was in full swing, and everyone was having a great time. Everyone in the Federation had been invited, even HHH, since he and Stephanie had put their past behind them. Everyone was eating and chatting, when Kurt clinked his knife against his glass announcing his speech.

"Everyone quiet down, quiet down," Kurt started, "Now as the best man I have to come up here and make a speech about my very best friends, Chris and Stephanie. What can I say about these two, they're absolutely perfect for one another. And it only took them forever to figure it out," everyone laughed, while Jericho and Stephanie rolled their eyes, "On screen they both play jackasses, and off-screen they're two of the nicest people around, so they really were meant for each other in every sense of the word. I wish them all the best, and many, many years of happiness. To Chris and Stephanie," he finished raising his glass for a toast.

"To Chris and Stephanie!" everyone echoed, and toasted to the happy couple.

"Now I think that it's time for their first dance together," Kurt said. Jericho got out of his seat, and grabbed Stephanie's hand bringing her to the dance floor. The first few chords of "Love Me Tender" came on, and Jericho took Stephanie in his arms.

Stephanie rested her head on Jericho's shoulder as they swayed to the music. He was gently humming the tune in her ear, and she felt a feeling of serenity wash over her. She loved being in his arms. Her mind conjured up images of their future together and how fantastic it was going to be. She had finally found the happiness that had eluded her for so long. She was finally home.

Jericho pulled Stephanie closer to him, feeling her tighten her arms around him. This moment, with her in his arms was so perfect. He couldn't wait to have many more moments with her as their lives progressed. He had never felt so right in his entire life.

As the song ended they broke apart, and Jericho kissed Stephanie as all their guest clapped. They both smiled at each other as they broke apart, happiness shining in their eyes.

Jericho and Stephanie were getting ready to leave, the only thing Stephanie had to do was throw her bouquet and they would be off for two weeks in Europe. Stephanie climbed half way up a flight of stairs and turned around. She threw the bouquet and turned back around to see who had caught it. She laughed when she realized who it was.

Jericho took her by the hand, and together they made their way out the door, ready to start their lives together. They said good-bye to everyone, Stephanie saying good-bye to her parents, and they were off in the limo before they knew it.

Kurt stood there dumb-founded as Shane McMahon walked up to him. He gave him a pat on the back.

"You'll look great in a dress," Shane said chuckling, as he looked at Kurt who held Stephanie's bouquet in his hand.


	5. Baby Mine

A/N: This chapter is based around the song "Baby Mine.

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).**

I'd like to thank those of you who have reviewed, and if you haven't reviewed, why the hell not? Come on, just a couple words is all I ask. ;)

And on another note, I'm warning you this chapter is sap-errific. I'm talking full-on warm, fuzzy goodness. You have been warned.

* * *

Stephanie had just finished breakfast, finally being able to spend a weekend at home. It had been a hectic five months since she and Jericho had gotten married. As soon as their honeymoon was over, it was back to work for the both of them. They were lucky if they got a few hours alone during shows, let alone a few days.

This weekend Jericho wasn't doing any house shows, and she had no obligations to be at them either, so they both had a much-needed break. The past five months had been great nonetheless, she and Chris were so happy, and she felt like her life couldn't get any better. Jericho came down, and kissed her on the cheek as he got himself some coffee.

"Morning babe," he said.

"Morning to you, sleep well?"

"With you next to me, I always sleep well, what about you?"

"Actually I think I'm coming down with something, I just feel weird," she told him. Jericho came over and kissed her forehead.

"Well, you're not warm."

"Eh, it's probably just a cold, I'll be fine," she said smiling at him.

"If you insist."

A week and a half later, Stephanie was still feeling miserable. And when Stephanie was miserable she made it known. Her virus had gotten worse, and now she was throwing up. Jericho kept telling her to go to the doctor, but she kept brushing it off, saying it was just a touch of the flu.

After another couple days of feeling awful, Stephanie conceded and decided to visit the doctor. Anything was better than feeling awful all the time, even going to the doctor. They did the normal tests, and Stephanie was called into the doctor's office after the tests had come back. She sat down in one of the seats, ready to hear what she had to say.

"Mrs. Irvine, we ran some tests, and figured out why you haven't been feeling well," the physician, Dr. Sheehan, told her. Stephanie braced herself for the news.

"And why is that?"

"You're pregnant." Stephanie looked at the doctor in shock, not believing her ears. She was pregnant! Never in a million years had she thought she was pregnant. She was having a baby!

"Wow, really? Are you sure?" Stephanie asked, still in disbelief.

"Yes, you're about 5 weeks along. Now you have to go to the pharmacy to pick up some pre-natal vitamins, and you should schedule your next check- up."

"Um, yeah, ok," Stephanie said, nodding numbly.

She walked out of the doctor's office, not aware of her surroundings. She had to tell Jericho, but how would he take the news? They had never discussed children before. She didn't even know if he wanted kids or not. Everything was so confusing, all she knew was that she was going to be having a baby.

She drove back home, thinking about the baby, and what that entailed. A part of her was scared of becoming a parent. Would she even make a good parent? Or would she traumatize her kids for life? She was scared that it would be the latter. Hopefully she would make a good mother. She did love kids, and now faced with the prospect of having a child of her own was thrilling, now all she had to do was tell Jericho.

She arrived home, and nervously walked into the front door. Jericho was sitting on the couch watching a soccer game. He was so engrossed in it, he didn't even notice that she had walked in. She cleared her throat, and he looked over to her.

"Hi sweetie, how was the doctor's?"

"It was the doctor," she told him, going over to sit next to him on the couch. She didn't know how to bring up her pregnancy with him. Should she just blurt it out, or build up to it?

"Well, what did he say, do you have a virus or something?" He looked at her questioningly.

"Definitely 'or something'," she told him, trying her best to calm her nerves, and put a smile on her face.

"Well, what's the matter then? Are you ok?" Jericho looked at her worriedly, wondering what was up. Stephanie sighed.

"I'm ok, don't worry."

"Then what is it?" Stephanie took a deep breath before saying what she had to say. She took Jericho's hand in hers and looked him in the eyes.

"Chris, I'm pregnant," she said, eyes not leaving his. Jericho's look turned to a surprised one, and his eyes went from hers to her abdomen, and back to look her in the eyes.

"Excuse me! Did you just say you were pregnant?" he asked, his voice going about two octaves higher than usual.

"Yeah Chris, I'm pregnant, about 5 weeks along."

"Wow, oh my God, I wasn't expecting this at all," Jericho said, running a hand through his long blonde hair. Stephanie looked at him imploringly.

"Do you not want a baby?" She said, willing tears not to form in her eyes.

Since she had found out about the baby, she had warmed up to the idea, and she had hoped that Jericho would like the idea too. Jericho looked at her, and saw tears in her eyes. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face, and cupped her cheek with his hand.

"Of course I want a baby Stephy. I'm just shocked, that's all."

"So we're really going to have a baby?" Stephanie said, a small smile on her face. Jericho leaned in and kissed her.

"We're gonna be parents," he said laughing softly.

Jericho and Stephanie walked into her doctor's office, ready for their first appointment. A week had gone by since they had found out they were going to be parents, and both had adjusted to the idea. Now they were both ecstatic to become parents. They hadn't told anyone yet. They wanted to keep it a secret for a while, something that was just theirs.

When Stephanie was called up, she walked into one of the rooms with Jericho by her side. She put the usual garb on and sat down on the table provided for her. The doctor came in and did the usual check-up.

"Did you want to see your child?" the doctor asked them.

"Can we?" Stephanie asked her. The doctor nodded, and Stephanie smiled up at Jericho, "Sure, we'd love to."

The doctor took out a wand connected to an ultrasound machine and brought it to Stephanie's stomach. She moved it around for a while and then stopped. She pointed to a blip on the screen.

"There's your baby," she said pointing to a small blob.

Jericho and Stephanie stared at their child in awe. They were both overwhelmed by the entire experience. That was their child in there, something they made together. Jericho grabbed Stephanie's hand and gave it a squeeze. Stephanie could feel tears well up in her eyes.

"Wow," Jericho muttered in amazement.

"Do you want to hear the heartbeat?" Stephanie nodded in response, too taken up in emotion to speak. The doctor turned a knob and a fast paced thumping filled the room.

"Oh my God, that's our baby," Stephanie said, looking up at Jericho. He grinned at her, happy beyond reason. They were really having a baby.

A couple of days later, Jericho and Stephanie decided to let the proverbial cat out of the bag. They were going to announce it on SmackDown, that way they wouldn't have to tell everyone separately. It would also give them a chance to explain Stephanie's imminent departure. Basically they were going to give a shoot promo.

They arrived at the arena like normal, except for the huge smiles that were on their faces. The time passed fairly quickly, and before they knew it, they were standing at the gorilla. Jericho grasped Stephanie's hand, and gave it an encouraging squeeze before his music hit signaling for them to go out there.

They walked out, and down the ramp, both with microphones in their hands. They were greeted by angry boos from the crowd, seeing as they were both still heels. Jericho led Stephanie up the ring steps, before he climbed up himself. He held the ropes for her, and together they stood in the middle of the ring.

"Now I know you're all wondering why we would grace you with our presence?" Jericho asked the crowd, his patented smirk on his face, "Well, we have a little announcement to make."

"Yes, we've got some good news and we've got some bad news," Stephanie said speaking into the microphone.

"Now Steph, which should we tell them first, the good news or the bad news?"

"Hmm, I'm thinking the bad news," Stephanie said sneering at the crowd.

"Ok, well the bad news is," Jericho paused for dramatic effect, "That unfortunately Stephanie is going to have to be off TV for a while." The crowd started cheering enthusiastically, which Jericho and Stephanie both ignored.

"I know you're all going to miss me, but I really do have to go, and Jericho while we're at it, why don't you tell them the good news?"

"With pleasure Stephanie, the good news is...Stephanie and I are going to be parents!" Jericho said with a wide grin on his face.

Stephanie went to his side and he wrapped an arm around her waist. The arena had broken out in various "It's Not Yours" and "Slut" chants, but Jericho and Stephanie ignored them. They left the ring, and walked back up the ramp.

As soon as they got backstage, they were bombarded by different Superstars, all of them congratulating the two of them. Several of the divas went to hug Stephanie. Vince walked over to them, and Stephanie looked up at him.

"You're going to have a baby?" he asked her.

She nodded at him, "Yeah, I am Daddy." He engulfed her in a hug, which she gladly returned.

"I'm so happy for the two of you," he said before pulling away, and going over to shake Jericho's hand, "So when exactly am I going to become a grandfather?"

"In about seven and half months," Jericho answered.

"I can't wait."

"Neither can we," Stephanie said grinning.

Stephanie sat on the couch at home, lounging and generally being lazy. Chris was due home any minute, so she was waiting for his arrival. She laid her hand on her bulging stomach. She was now in her seventh month, and had stopped traveling about three months ago. She hated being at home by herself, but it was safer this way.

She and Jericho had been reveling in her pregnancy ever since they had found out. They both enjoyed watching as her stomach grew everyday. She remembered how excited they had been the first time that they had felt the baby kick, and the smile that Jericho had gotten on his face. Or whenever they saw their child on the ultrasound, it was an incredible feeling. She couldn't wait to have her child in her arms.

Jericho walked into the house, and into the living room. He saw Stephanie sitting on the couch watching television. He couldn't help but think she looked incredibly beautiful. She had this glow that just seemed to emanate from her. He walked over and put his hands on her shoulders from behind.

"Hey babe."

"Hey," she said smiling happily, looking up at him. He leaned down and kissed her.

"I've missed you both."

"We missed you too. So how were the shows?"

"Eh, same old, same old. I miss you being there with me."

"Don't worry, I'll be back before you know it," she said laughing.

Later that evening, they were both in bed, and Jericho was currently talking to Stephanie's abdomen, as she read a magazine. He was telling the unborn child all about wrestling, and how hockey was the best sport around.

"You know, we don't know if it's going to be a boy," she told him, setting down her magazine.

"Who said I wanted it to be a boy?"

"Well, the way you're talking, I'm thinking you probably have his whole athletic future planned," she said with a snort.

"Well, I just want them to know about the two best things in the world: wrestling and hockey."

"You're impossible, you know that right?"

"Yeah, but I make life interesting," he said winking at her.

"Oh God, I pray this child is not like you," she said jokingly.

"And why not?" Jericho said indignantly.

"Because it's bad enough I have one of you to deal with, I don't need two," she said laughing out loud, as he came up beside her and kissed her firmly on the mouth.

"I love you," he said smirking at her.

"Bleh, I love you too," she responded, before turning off the light and going to sleep.

The next two months passed quickly, and Stephanie's due date was fast approaching. She was due in a week, but she had been pretty miserable for the past two weeks. Her back was aching, and she was pretty sure her feet were swollen, though since she couldn't see them anymore it was hard to tell.

She was sitting at the kitchen table, eating breakfast, and waiting for Jericho to come down so they could go shopping for some last minute things for the nursery. All of a sudden, she felt a sharp pain run through her. She grabbed her stomach, and let out a groan.

"Chris!" she managed to yell out. Jericho bounded down the stairs, and came into the kitchen, only to find Stephanie doubled over in pain. She was trying to stand while gripping the kitchen table. He rushed over to her, and helped her up.

"What's the matter?" He asked her worriedly.

"The baby," she let out another moan as another shot of pain ripped through her, "I think it's coming."

"Ok, well, let's get you to the hospital all right," he said as calmly as he could muster. In actuality he was pretty tense.

He walked her slowly out to his car, having to pause a few times when she had a contraction. He managed to get her in the car, and sped off to the hospital. They got there, and after they admitted Stephanie, she was put in a private room. Once she was settled, Jericho went out and called Vince and Linda, and his parents, letting them know that Stephanie was in labor. After he was through, he walked back into the hospital room.

"Hey, how are you feeling?"

"Eh, I've been better," she told him, as she shifted on the bed.

"What did the doctor say?" He walked over to her, and sat in the chair next to the bed.

"He said it could be a little while."

"Well, I just called our parents, and they'll try to be here as soon as possible."

"That's good," she said before another contraction hit her. Jericho stood up and gripped her hand, waiting for it to pass.

A couple hours later, Stephanie was ready to go into the delivery room. She'd had a fairly easy labor so far, and she was hoping that it didn't get too bad. Jericho came to stand next to her, ready to spew out encouragements and the like.

As her labor progressed, so did the pain. Stephanie didn't think she'd ever experienced such pain before. It was excruciating, and horrible. She had never wanted to rip someone's head off more than she did that moment.

"Oh God, it hurts, it hurts," she kept mumbling. Jericho brushed the hair out of her face.

"It'll be ok sweetie, you're almost done," he said soothingly.

"Yeah, easy for you to say dumbass, you're not the one down here," she blurted out, giving him her patented "evil" look. (A/N: This is quite possibly the scariest look on Earth) Jericho quickly shut his mouth, preventing himself from having to see that look again.

"Ok, Stephanie, one more push and you can finally meet your baby," the doctor said.

"I don't think I can," Stephanie said exhausted. She just wanted to sleep, but the pain was so bad.

"Sure you can, just one big push and you're done," the doctor answered.

"Come on Steph, you can do it," Jericho told her.

"Didn't I tell you to shut up!" she shrieked at him. She finally gathered up all her strength and pushed with all her might. Finally she heard a high-pitched wail, and looked down to see her child. She fell back on her pillow, drained beyond words.

"Congratulations, it's a healthy baby girl," the doctor said holding her up. Stephanie smiled through her exhaustion.

"Oh my God, she's gorgeous," Jericho said, leaning down to kiss her forehead, "You did a great job Stephy."

She smiled before drifting off into the land of dreams.

Stephanie woke up in her hospital room, still groggy from the labor. She looked to her left and saw Chris sitting there holding a tiny bundle in his arms. He was currently cooing at the baby, and she smiled. She tried to sit herself up in the bed, which garnered Jericho's attention and he looked up at her.

"Hey you," he said smiling at her.

"Hey," she said smiling back, "Is that my little girl?"

"Yeah, you wanna hold her?"

"Definitely."

Jericho stood up and walked over to her bed. He gently placed the baby in her arms, and sat down on the space next to her. Stephanie looked down at the little girl, and decided that she was the most beautiful baby she had ever seen. It was a little too early to tell who she looked like, but she was gorgeous that was for sure.

"She's beautiful," Stephanie said looking from her daughter to Jericho. He smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Yeah, she is," he said smiling softly at his wife.

"She needs a name though...what was the name that we chose?"

"Guinevere Lily Irvine," she said smiling down at her daughter, "Gwynn for short."

"Oh yeah, I remember now," he said with a soft laugh as he looked down on his wife and daughter.

"I don't think my life could get any more perfect than it is in this moment," she whispered as her daughter began to nod off.

"Me neither."

"What did we ever do to deserve any of this?"

"I don't know, we're just lucky I guess," he told her, wrapping his arm around her, as they both watched their daughter sleep.

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you too."

"Oh, and Chris?"

"Yeah babe?"

"I'm sorry for yelling at you in there."

"It's not a problem," he told her kissing her cheek, "Just please don't ever give me that look again, I was almost scarred for life."

"Ok, I promise," she said giggling softly. He laughed quietly.

"Good."


	6. I've Been Loving You Too Long

A/N: This chapter is based around the song "I've Been Loving You Too Long" by Otis Redding.

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).**

Summary: Ok, we're skipping ahead in time now. It's eight years later, and Stephanie and Jericho have three kids now. The oldest being Gwynn who was in the last chapter. She's seven now. Then there's their second daughter Aurora, or Rory, who's five. Finally there's the baby of the family, Chris Jr., who's a year old. Ok, that about sets it up for this chapter. And if you do get confused or anything, I'm really sorry.

* * *

Stephanie sighed as she got the kid's breakfast ready. She would be sending Gwynn and Rory to school soon, and she had to make sure she got their breakfast. She was pouring some cereal when she started to think about the last few years. 

It seemed that her and Jericho were in some sort of weird, mundane cycle the last year. She couldn't explain it, but she just felt like their relationship was empty. It scared her somewhat, she still loved him, she just felt like their relationship was stagnant.

Jericho came down the stairs, a rare day off from work. He had retired from ring action a couple years ago, but he was still a big part of the production. He was now the Commissioner for WWE, working directly under Vince, who was still running the company, though Stephanie and Shane had been slowly taking over the business aspect. Stephanie and Shane had set up a Florida branch of Titan, and she ran it, while Shane ran the Connecticut headquarters.

He looked to Stephanie standing by the window making breakfast, and so help him, he still thought she was as beautiful as the first day that he had realized he had feelings for her. Recently she had seemed kind of distant, but he figured that her mind was elsewhere with all the work that had to be done. He didn't blame her for being a little bit on the edgy side. She was a very busy woman, mother and businesswoman.

Jericho walked over to her, leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. She turned to him and smiled at him. He thought the smile looked a bit strained, but he ignored it.

"What're you doing?" he asked.

"Just making the girl's breakfast before I take them to school," she told him, going to get the milk out of the fridge.

"You want any help?"

"No, that's ok," she said turning back to him.

"You sure?"

"Yes!" she said snapping at him, "Sorry, I'm just not in a good mood today."

"I'm sorry, how bout I drive them to school?" he asked giving her a grin.

"Sure," she said trying to smile back, but finding it very difficult for some reason. Just then their two daughters came down.

"Hey little girls, guess who's taking you to school today?" Jericho said walking over to the table.

"You, Daddy," Gwynn answered, giving him a look he knew all too well, since he saw it on Stephanie all the time.

"You just have to ruin everything, don't you," he said leaning down to kiss her on the head.

Stephanie left the three of them, and walked upstairs to her son's room. He would just be waking up, and she wanted to get him before he started crying. She walked into the nursery, and saw Chris Jr. standing in his crib. She went over to pick him up.

"Hey there, Chrissy baby, were you waiting for Mommy," she said as she held him in her arms. Every time she looked at him, he reminded her of Jericho, he looked so much like his father.

As she was walking down the hallway she caught sight of her wedding picture. She stood for a moment and stared at it. She had been so happy that day, so in love. She couldn't help but feel that she wasn't the same person that was in that picture, that somehow she just didn't feel the same way she did then.

Jericho came running up the stairs, and stopped when he saw her. He came over and stood next to her, both of them looking at the picture.

"That was the best day of my life," he whispered into her ear. Stephanie jumped and turned to him, not even noticing he had come upstairs.

"Huh? What did you say?"

"I said that was the best day of my life," he said grinning at her, before leaning in to kiss Stephanie.

"Yeah, me too," she said to him.

"Well, I'm going to go drive the girls, I'll be back in a bit."

"Ok," she told him, as he ran back down the stairs. She stared at the picture again and sighed. Looking back, it didn't seem like it was the best day of her life anymore. She didn't know what to think.

Jericho couldn't help but think about Stephanie as he drove Gwynn and Rory to school. She seemed sad lately. He didn't know what the cause was, but he wanted to find out. He hated the thought of her being upset, and he wanted to help her in any way that he could. He pulled up to the school.

"Bye Daddy," Rory said. Jericho smiled at her.

"Bye sweetie."

"See you later Daddy," Gwynn said before hopping out of the car. He couldn't help but think of how much they were like Stephanie. He didn't know how he handled three of them, but he loved them all. He grinned as he drove off.

Jericho walked into the house in search of Stephanie. He looked around for a while, finally finding her in the living room, sitting on the couch playing with their son. They were playing peek-a-boo, and Jericho snuck up behind Stephanie and put his hands over her eyes.

"Guess who?"

"Um, I don't know, why don't you enlighten me," she deadpanned.

"You're no fun Stephy," he said as he looked down at her. He walked around and sat on the couch next to the both of them. He took Chris Jr. in his arms.

"Did the girls get to school on time?"

"Yeah...Stephy, has something been bothering you?" Stephanie was taken aback for a moment.

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, you've just seemed sad or something, I just wanted to know if you were ok."

"Yeah, I'm fine, really," she replied forcing a smile on her face. If he knew the real reason, she didn't know how he would react.

"So how about you stay home today, and we can have some quality time together," he said smiling suggestively at her, before tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"As much as I'd love that, really, I can't, I really have to go to the office," Stephanie told him, even though she knew she really didn't need to go to the office. She just felt like she couldn't stay there alone with him.

"Ok, I guess," he said pouting, "I guess I'll just stay here and have a father-son kind of day," he finished with a chuckle.

"Sounds like fun," Stephanie said getting up so she could go upstairs and get ready.

"Hey wait a second," he said pulling her arm. She looked back at him. He pulled her down to him, and kissed her, "I love you."

"I love you too," she said half-heartedly.

Stephanie sat behind her desk, trying to work, but her mind kept wandering to Jericho. She felt like she needed some space between them. Her feelings for him just didn't seem to be what they once were. It was like she wasn't in love with him anymore. That thought seemed so foreign to her, she had been in love with him for over nine years.

She did love him, but it wasn't like how she used to love him. It was hard to explain her feelings, all of them jumbling in her brain, confusing her even more. Could it be that she didn't love Jericho anymore? When had this happened?

She knew that she still loved him when Chris Jr. was born, but since then she could barely stand to be with him for a long period of time. Her life had become an endless cycle. There was no excitement, no thrill to her life anymore. She wished she had a word to describe it, but words escaped her.

She looked to the pictures that adorned her desk. There were so many happy faces in those pictures. So many smiles, and laughter, and bright eyes. She wondered where those times had gone. And she wondered if they ever would come back again.

Stephanie lay in bed that night, unable to sleep. She could feel Jericho's presence so close to her, and instead of the safety and comfort it used to give her, it gave her nothing. She turned over and looked at him. She couldn't stay in this relationship anymore. It was too confusing, and she needed a break. She needed a break from Jericho.

Something deep inside was trying to tell her this was wrong, that this was a huge mistake, but she pushed that thought out of her mind. She needed to leave him, at least for a while. She had to sort out her feelings, she needed space. She resolved to tell him tomorrow. She slowly caressed his face with her hand as a tear slipped down her cheek.

She turned back around, more tears spilling down her face. She knew this was the right thing to do, for both of them. She didn't know how Jericho felt personally, but she knew how she felt, and it was time to leave.

She cried herself to sleep, dreading what the new day would bring.

Stephanie woke up, and turned over in bed, hoping to find Jericho there, but the other side was empty. She sat up and looked around to see if he was still in the room. He wasn't. She got up and went downstairs, only to find Jericho and their kids all watching Saturday morning cartoons, and laughing hysterically. Rory was the first one to spot her.

"Mommy, come watch with us," Rory said, smiling her sweet little smile at her.

"Maybe later darling, Mommy needs to talk to Daddy for a second," Stephanie told her. Jericho turned his head towards her, and carefully set Chris Jr. next to Gwynn on the couch. He got up and followed Stephanie into the kitchen.

"Hey babe, what's up?" he asked smiling at her. She could feel the tears already starting to form.

"Chris, we need to talk." Jericho saw the tears forming and walked over to her. He put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them gently.

"What's the matter Stephy?"

"I have to go Chris," she said looking up at him. Jericho looked at her bewildered.

"Go where, do you have to take a business trip?"

"No Chris, I have to go, as in away from here...away from you."

"Wh-what do you mean away from me," Jericho asked his voice wavering as he began to understand what Stephanie was saying. He took a step back away from her.

"I can't be around you anymore Chris, I'm just so confused about my feelings right now, and I need to get away."

"Are you leaving me?" Jericho asked, tears beginning to form in his own eyes. He couldn't understand why Stephanie would leave him.

"Yes," she said freely crying now. Jericho's eyes filled with tears, and he was trying his hardest not to start crying.

"Why? Why are you doing this?" Jericho asked, desperate to understand why the woman he loved with his whole being would leave him.

"I don't really know Chris, I just know I have to go."

"But I love you Stephanie," Jericho said pleadingly, wanting her to stay, to not abandon him.

"That's the thing Chris, I'm not sure I love you back anymore," she said looking him in the eye. Jericho's tears spilled over, and he couldn't help but cry.

Jericho stood in the airport, saying goodbye to his wife and kids. Stephanie had decided to go back to Connecticut, and she was going to take the kids with her. Jericho still traveled with the company so he couldn't be with them at all times. So now he had to say goodbye to them for a while.

"Why aren't you coming with us Daddy?" Rory asked innocently as he crouched down to talk to her.

"Because I have things that I have to do, and Mommy is going to take care of you."

"But I want you to come with us!" Rory said, her little voice raising. She threw herself at Jericho, wrapping her little arms around him. Jericho hugged her back tightly.

"I know cutie, I know, but I'll come and visit all the time, you won't even notice I'm gone," he told her. She pulled away and went to stand next to Stephanie. Jericho turned to his oldest daughter.

"Now, you be good," he said winking at her.

"Daddy, I'm a Princess, we're always good," she replied winking back at him. He couldn't help but think that she was too smart for her seven years. He hugged her tightly, knowing he would miss her cute banter. He stood up, and looked to Chris Jr. who was being held by Stephanie.

"Bye-bye big guy," he said, letting Chris Jr. grab his finger as he kissed him on the forehead.

"Da-da," was all Chris Jr. could manage to say. Jericho smiled then turned to Stephanie. He looked into her eyes, which had tears in them. That had become a normal occurrence over the past week or so. He ran his hand gently down her cheek.

"Goodbye Stephanie," he told her, looking at her sadly.

"Goodbye Chris," she said back, a tear rolling down her cheek, he wiped it away affectionately, then pulled his hand back. She grabbed Rory's hand with her free one, and the four of them walked up into the terminal.

Jericho watched as his family walked away from him. He felt them take a piece of them with him. He watched until he couldn't see them anymore, then walked away quietly.

Stephanie sat looking out the window of the plane, watching as the clouds passed by. She sighed and looked at her three kids, all of whom had fallen asleep. So now she was alone with her thoughts.

It had been a lot harder to leave Chris then she thought it would be. Every time she looked into his face, she felt a feeling of guilt rise up inside her. She knew that she had hurt him deeply, and that had been the last thing she had wanted.

She also still had that nagging feeling that she was making the wrong decision. It would pop up at the oddest times. But she knew this was the best thing for them. It was best for all of them.

Jericho drove home quietly, not even bothering to turn the radio on. He thought about what had happened in the past week or so. His wife had left him, and his life was shattered. He couldn't help but remember the look in her eyes as he said goodbye. He knew there was still something there. But obviously Stephanie didn't believe that anymore.

He walked into the house, the feeling of emptiness washing over him. It wasn't their house anymore, it was just his now. He wandered from room to room aimlessly, not really paying attention to anything. He ended up in the living room staring at a picture of him and Stephanie from when they were married. It was right after they had cut the cake, and they both had icing all over their faces, as they were laughing at each other. They looked so incredibly happy, and his heart started to ache.

He grabbed the picture, and threw it across the room where the frame shattered into a million pieces. He didn't bother to go pick it up, leaving it lying haphazardly on the ground. Instead, Jericho sank to the ground, tears falling down his face.

Stephanie looked down at the papers again, making sure they were all in order. They seemed to be, and she signed the last page, probably the last time she would ever sign the name: Stephanie McMahon-Irvine. She looked down at her signature, thinking about what she had just done. She had signed away eight years of marriage, just like that and it was over.

She passed them to her lawyer, and he took them, telling her that they would courier them over to Jericho as soon as possible. She smiled and nodded as the man left her office. A month ago she was married, and now, well, now she wasn't. Her smile faded, and she hoped Jericho would understand her decision.

"I'm sorry Chris," she whispered to no one but herself.

Jericho heard the doorbell ring and went to answer it. It was an official messenger from Stephanie's lawyer, serving him with divorce papers. He signed for them, and brought the papers inside. He walked to the kitchen and set them down on the table, staring dumbly at them. His whole body had gone numb the moment he had taken the papers.

He cautiously opened the envelope, and pulled out a stack of papers. He carefully looked over them, making sure what he was reading was right. He turned to the last page and saw her signature, bold just like her. She was divorcing him.

So this was it, this was the end. It was all so anti-climactic. Something that had started so strong, had ended like this. It just didn't seem fair in a way. He took a pen from one of the drawers and walked back to the table. He took a deep breath and signed where it was called for him to sign. As he finished the last page he sighed deeply.

That was it. For all intents and purposes, he wasn't married anymore. He had really, truly lost her. She had slipped out of his grasp as quietly as she had slipped in.

"I hope you're happy Stephy," Chris whispered to the air, hoping she received the message.

A/N: Ok, I know that was really sad, but just remember, it all ends happily.


	7. Always On My Mind

A/N:Thischapter is based aroundthe song "Always on my Mind" by Elvis.

**To read the original version with song lyrics go to: bitter-solemnity. com /fics /Moments.php (just get rid of the spaces).

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Jericho walked through his front door, sighing as he turned on the light. He had just gotten back from a date that Christian had set him up on. The woman had been nice enough, but he just couldn't feel attracted to anyone but HER. Stephanie, his ex-wife.

It had been almost nine months since they had gotten divorced, but he still wasn't over her. He wasn't sure he'd ever be over her. Sitting there at dinner tonight, with this strange woman in front of him, his mind couldn't help but try to find any traces of Stephanie in her. He found that he did that with any woman he met, he tried to find just a little piece that reminded him of her.

He set his keys down on the table, and went to check his messages. He looked at the machine and noticed there were two messages. He pushed the buttons and listened to them. The first one was from Christian, asking how his date had gone, and telling him to give him a call tomorrow. The second one was from Stephanie.

"Hi Chris, just calling to confirm that you were picking up the kids this weekend. I guess you're not there, so if you want to give me a call then you can. Otherwise, I'll see you on Friday, bye."

Jericho stood silently, just listening to her voice. It sounded the same every single time he talked to her, like she wanted to be any place but talking to him. He listened to it one more time, just wanting to hear her voice again. He sighed, deleted the messages, and went to bed.

Jericho pulled up to her house, ready to pick up his kids. They both had custody of them, but since Stephanie had decided to work from home, rather than go to the office anymore, she took care of them more often. Jericho, who still traveled with the company, saw them whenever he had a free weekend, which was usually once every two or three weeks.

He got out of the car and walked up the front door, ringing the doorbell. He could hear someone running to the door, and it flew open, revealing Rory who ran to him, and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Daddy! I missed you!" she yelled happily, as Jericho moved to pick her up.

"Hey there cutie, I missed you too," he smiled widely at her. He looked into the house and saw Gwynn walking towards the door holding a bunch of things.

"Hi Daddy, I have all the stuff we're bringing," she told him, dragging some bags out.

"Did you bring your whole closet Gwynn?" he said reaching out to ruffle her hair. She smiled at him, two teeth missing.

"Well Daddy, Mommy always says you never know what mood you'll be in, and you always need an outfit to match." Jericho let out a small laugh. Gwynn was more like Stephanie every day.

"Oh, I see, where is your mother?"

"She's cleaning up Chrissy," Rory chimed in. As soon as she said that Stephanie came walking down the hallway, holding Chris Jr. in her arms. Jericho's breath caught, just like it did every time he saw her. He still thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on.

"Hi Chris," Stephanie said smiling at him as best she could. Jericho set Rory down, and took Chris Jr. from her arms.

"Stephanie," he greeted her nodding.

"So you're going to bring the kids back on Sunday right?"

"Yeah, probably in the afternoon, is that okay with you?"

"That's fine," she told him.

"Good, well, see you later," Jericho said, awkwardly.

"Bye," she told him before kissing each of their children goodbye. He turned around and walked to the car, not once looking back.

"Daddy?" Jericho looked to his younger daughter, his other two kids fast asleep on the airplane.

"Yes cutie?"

"Why don't you live with us anymore?" she asked curiously. Jericho was surprised by the question. He didn't really know how to answer that one.

"Well, Mommy and I, we decided that we needed to be apart from each other," he explained the best that he could.

"But why?"

"Because sometimes Mommies and Daddies just can't be around each other anymore."

"But don't you love Mommy?" Rory innocently looked at him. Jericho didn't even hesitate for a moment before answering.

"Yes, I do."

Rory nodded then went back to the coloring book that she was working on, satisfied with the answer she had received. Jericho looked at her for a moment, wondering what had prompted her to ask that. And he kept wondering the exact same thing that she was, why weren't he and Stephanie together?

Maybe if he had tried harder, she might still be with him. Maybe he could have made her happier if only he had put more effort into it. Had he put her behind his job or something, he really didn't know. Whatever problems they had, he should have tried to resolve them. Then maybe she would still be with him. Maybe they would still be a family.

A few months later, Jericho was sitting across from his best friend, Kurt Angle. Kurt was acting as the general manager for SmackDown, so they were both still traveling with the company. They had decided to catch a bite to eat after the show.

"So how are the kids?" Kurt asked.

"They're good, I had them last weekend. We went to New York for the weekend. Took them to Central Park, Statue of Liberty, it was pretty fun."

"So I guess that means you had to see Stephanie."

"Well, yeah, why?"

"Just wondering if you two had come to your senses yet," Kurt said with a smile. Jericho groaned at him.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, the fact that you two are idiots for ever getting divorced, when it's so blatantly obvious that you still love each other."

"I don't know what you're talking about, you're crazy Kurt."

"Maybe I am. But tell me this, do you love her?"

"Yes, but obviously that wasn't enough," he said dryly.

"Well, that's half the battle then, I know that she still loves you."

"And just how exactly do you know this, has she revealed this information to you personally?"

"No, but come on, it's obvious, she loves you, I know it"

"I hate to burst your bubble Kurt, but she doesn't love me, ok, and we're not going to get back together. That's just the way it is," Jericho sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Every time he got into a serious discussion with Kurt it would always end with talk about him and Stephanie.

"Just you wait Chris, when you two get back together, I'm going to gloat all over the place."

"You know what Kurt, if Stephanie and I ever do get back together, which won't happen, but if it does, then I give you full permission to give me a big, fat 'I told you so' ok?"

"That's all I ask."

Later that evening, Jericho was lying down in his hotel room, and thinking about what Kurt had said. Kurt seemed so sure that he and Stephanie would get back together. How could Kurt be so sure that they would end up together? Sure he still loved Stephanie, but he thought it was pretty obvious that they had both moved on.

He had seen a couple women since the divorce, nothing serious of course, he just couldn't bring himself to get serious with a woman right now. Or maybe ever, he didn't know. He knew that Stephanie had seen some guys since they split up. He had either heard from some of their friends, or the kids had let it slip.

It hurt to think of Stephanie with other guys. Sure, she had been married before he had been with her, but she had confided in him that her first marriage hadn't been all that happy at all. She and HHH always competing for control, it was hardly the prototype for a happy marriage. She had also told him that she was actually happy they had gotten divorced, because by the end of their marriage it had been all bitterness. He wondered if she felt the same way about their broken marriage?

But this was different than her first marriage, Jericho wasn't in love with Stephanie when she was married to HHH, but he was in love with her now. Maybe it was hypocritical of him to not want Stephanie to see other men when he had seen other women, but he didn't care. Just thinking of the woman he loved kissing another man made him shudder in disgust.

She had ruined him, he concluded. He was ruined for other women because of her. He couldn't be with someone else now, not after her. He would look at a woman and all he would see would be Stephanie. He couldn't stop thinking about her, she invaded his every thought, clouding him from every other woman he had ever come across.

He thought back on all the women that he had gone out with since Stephanie. He realized that he had stopped seeing them all for the same reason: he couldn't get over Stephanie. He felt like he was cheating on her each and every time. He knew he wasn't technically, but his heart told him otherwise. His heart still belonged to her, and it always would.

Jericho was sitting at the park watching his kids run around like mad, enjoying themselves. He couldn't help but smile. Gwynn looked over at him, and he smiled at her. She walked over and sat down on the bench next to him.

"Daddy, are you ok?" she asked leaning her head on his arm.

"Of course Princess. Why do you think I'm sad?"

"I don't know Daddy, you just looked kind of sad."

"I'm not sad, I'm with you guys, you don't make me sad."

"Sometimes Mommy seems sad." Jericho looked down at her curiously.

"What do you mean?"

"Sometimes she looks like she's gonna cry. She just says that she needs hugs." Jericho wondered why Stephanie would be sad. It couldn't possibly be for any of the reasons he hoped for.

"But Brad makes her smile." Jericho's eyes widened and he looked at Gwynn in shock. She was still leaning on him, and didn't see the expression on his face.

"Gwynn, who's Brad?"

"He's the man Mommy's been going out to dinner with. He's very nice. He's been coming to see her for a while."

Jericho stared straight ahead, not being able to move. So Stephanie had a new someone in her life, and according to Gwynn he had been over for a while. He didn't know how to take this news. From what he had heard Stephanie had only been out with guys once or twice, but now she was actually seeing someone regularly.

Jericho had always had a thin shred of hope that he and Stephanie would find their way back to each other. It was mostly fueled by Kurt's diatribes on why him and Stephanie belonged together. He would never tell anyone though, they would probably laugh at him. Well, except for maybe Kurt. If he told Kurt he knew he would come up with some stupid scheme to try to reunite them.

But now that thin shred of hope had been cut, and Jericho knew that he had lost her. And his heart started to ache, the dull ache spreading through his body, until he was just numb.

Jericho woke up with a start, feeling his stomach flip-flop. He got out of bed, and went downstairs to fix some breakfast. He looked to the clock and realized it was almost lunchtime. He noticed the mailman drop off his mail, and went outside to pick it up.

He opened the mailbox, and suddenly a feeling of dread passed over him. He looked both ways making sure there was nothing behind him. He grabbed the mail, and the feeling was still with him. He walked inside his house and looked through the mail.

He came across a simple white envelope...

THE END

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this prequel, and now that it's finished, you should go read "I've Been Loving You Too Long" ;) But seriously, I hope you liked the story, and I thank all of you for taking the time to review it. I really enjoyed writing this one. :)


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